[Ads-l] an obscenity getsa new meaning

[James A. Landau]

The long, narrow green cap worn by US Army male soldiers with the dress 
uniform is officially known as the "garrison cap".
A polite slang term for this piece of headgear is "envelope cap" from 
its shape.

There are two obscene slang terms for this piece of headgear: "pussy 
cap" and "cunt cap" from the resemblance of the bottom of the cap to the 
shape of the female genitalia.

However, "pussy cap" has recently received a new, non-obscene meaning.

My wife and I were at the Women's March in Philadelphia yesterday (21 
January 2017) and I noticed many women wearing what looked like 
conventional stocking caps but instead of following the round shape of 
the top of the head, they had two projections, one on each side, 
resembling cat's ears.  I asked and was told they were "pussy caps" and 
were worn as a protest against President Trump's well-known demeaning 
remarks and actions against women.  

(These new headgear items are also known as "pussy hats", a term which 
in my experience was not used in the US Army).

How long has this new meaning of "pussy cap" been around?  

A quick search on Google News showed an article dated by Google News as 
January 3 on "pussy caps":
    
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/thousands-are-knitting-pussy-hats-for-the-womens-march-on-washington_us_586bb22ee4b0d9a5945c636a
There may be other earlier references; I just couldn't find them in a 
quick search.

Google News also referenced
    
http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2017/01/06/knitters_across_the_country_are_making_cat_ear_pussyhats_for_the_women_s.html
dated January 6, which claims that the "Pussyhat Project" was launched 
in November 2016.

   - Jim Landau (who marched)

PS: my eighteen-month-old granddaughter Abigail marched (actually rode 
her father's shoulders) in the January 21 march in Boston.  According to 
her parents, she was "marching for women's rights and later bedtimes"


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